“Amit Shah’s tactics were seen one after another. I believe he must have suggested that Ram Nath Kovind be made the President to balance caste equations and Advani sahab was left out,” said Gehlot, adding that these were not his personal comments but that he read this in an article. He later issued a clarification, saying that he was “misquoted”.

Meanwhile, the BJP demanded an apology from Gehlot and accused the Congress of an “anti-Dalit mindset”. The party urged the Election Commission to take cognizance of the matter and sought action against the Rajasthan CM. “Gehlot is speaking the language of Congress president Rahul Gandhi who is suffering from anti-Dalit, anti-poor and anti-backward mindset,” BJP spokesperson GVL Narasimha Rao said.